4. Launching
a major capital campaign without conducting a feasibility study
The
purpose of such a study, best conducted by outside consultants, is to
get
a frank assessment of whether or not your constituency will support you
with the size and number of gifts needed for a successful campaign. You
will also begin to identify the volunteer leadership that is essential
for such a drive.
5. Developing
your own customized software for tracking donors
Don't
let a "computer expert" tell you that you need to have a
custom-designed
database. There are dozens of good quality products available that will
take all the guesswork out of designing fundraising software. A good
place
to start are the software reviews at
Charity Village.
6. Sending
out boring "junk mail"
The
problem isn't with too much mail; it's the poor quality of the
messages.
Potential donors don't want to hear you complain about government
cutbacks
and rising costs of providing your services. They want to know that
they
can solve a problem with their donation - that they can make a
difference.
7. Focusing
on special events - when you need more than $50,000 and you need it now
Most
special events need a minimum of two years of "growing pains" before
they
become successful and very few will generate more than $50,000 in net
profit.
8. Forgetting
about the long term - planned gifts
In
the next few years, over $1 trillion will be handed down from one
generation
to the next in Canada. With all the attention paid to urgent short-term
needs, too many CEOs and Boards of Directors are not willing to invest
in planned giving programs - bequests, life insurance, annuities,
deferred
donations plans. Yet these sources will be vital in the future - if
cultivated
now.
9. Ignoring
donor recognition
Thanking
and appreciating donors is vital. People do like to be thanked both
privately
and publicly. Putting up a donor wall seems mundane but it helps all
the
parties involved in fundraising; and it does lead to more donations -
both
from current donors and for others who see the example set by their
friends,
neighbours and peers. Similarly, a regular newsletter to keep in touch
with donors is useful as a recognition device.
And
the Number One mistake organizations make when they launch a
fundraising
drive:
10. Thinking
fundraising is about fulfilling the organization's need for money
Successful
fundraising programs must be built on the needs and wishes of the
donor,
not of the organization. Too often we see organizations say it's too
much
trouble to do things the way the donor wants. To paraphrase Faith
Popcorn
who paraphrased John F. Kennedy: Ask Not What Your Donor Can Do For
You,
But What You Can Do For Your Donor.
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